Life in a Danish anarchist commune
Words and photography by Stella Zikos Behind a graffitied fortress located on the island of Amager in Copenhagen, Denmark is a slice of greenery and a different side to the city. ‘Freetown Christiania’ is an anarchical, autonomous community that has thrived since 1971. A former military base, it suffered urban decay before it was embraced by a group of anarchists who made it their own. Today, it’s a vibrant community home to 900 people, with buildings as colourful and eccentric as its residents and a do-it-yourself attitude at the heart of the Christianite lifestyle. The houses are inventive in their shapes, colours, and construction — all built by residents themselves.
circumstances. The “No Hard Drugs” law came in 1979, following the death of ten residents from overdoses. A resident I interviewed recalled their part in the Rainbow Army, who began a ‘Junk Blockade’ and cleared the streets of drug dealers, cleaned up after addicts, and offered them rehabilitation. One may ask how a place with no laws functions as efficiently and communally as Christiania does. One resident summed it up perfectly: because there is no system of ownership, it has influenced the state of mind of its people.
a backdrop of tough drug laws in Denmark and regular police raids. Thus, it has become a site of police brutality. A local resident described a recent incident that occurred in a children’s playground where they witnessed a man being tackled to the ground. It’s incidents like these, and many more, that have stoked further tension between Christiania and the Danish government. However, it is important to acknowledge that Pusher Street and Christiania are “two worlds,” a resident described. The hash trade has not been run by Christianites since 2004, following a major police raid, but by gangs.
There is also no leader. The town functions through regular communal meetings, allowing its residents to voice their perspectives Christiania’s common law “I don’t know a face,” a resident governs its community with nine key and participate in decision-making. mournfully stated. They expressed Because of this, Christiania, as rules: the most prominent being no weapons, no hard drugs, no violence, another resident described, “feels like their frustration at the ‘Pushers’ regularly taking Christiania’s a big family.” no motorcycle colours, and no cars. resources, and how the State has Its residents are united by their flag: used Pusher Street to justify their Perhaps the most well-known bright red with three yellow dots in undermining of Christiania’s vitality. the centre representing the three “i’s” aspect of Christiania is its ‘Green Light District’ located on Pusher of Christiania. The solution to the problem is Street, where marijuana is sold. that recreational marijuana use be “No photo” signs are displayed These regulations were forged legalised in Denmark. However, this is throughout the long street, against by townsfolk due to tumultuous
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unlikely given Denmark’s track record at a cost — the regular breakdown of being tough on drugs. in discourse with the Danish government. In 2011, Christiania The accessibility of marijuana, had no choice but to settle a together with the eccentricity of deal with them, purchasing the the town, has become a source of land at below-market levels tourism for Christiania. Boasting half and establishing the Christiania a million visitors annually, Christiania Foundation where residents pay is the fourth-largest tourist attraction a small rent per month for their in Copenhagen. place. A resident put it simply: “We live off the tourism.” They were generally unopposed to the influx of tourism, the caveat being that the community reap the benefits. Another Christianite I spoke to took issue with private tourism companies bringing hoards of people to Freetown, without allowing the community to experience direct monetary benefits.
The future of Christiania appears shaky, but not whilst its residents continue to maintain their fighting spirit. “I kan ikke slå os ihjel” is their unofficial national anthem, scrawled on t-shirts, sung loud and proud in the streets of the town. You cannot kill us.
Additionally, it has a commodifying effect — Christiania becomes a spectacle, rather than a community. Residents have to close their curtains to maintain privacy from the frequent tourist peekers desperate to gain insight into their alternative lifestyle. This alternative lifestyle comes
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